Sudan settles debts with World Bank

Sudan has settled its debts with the World Bank (WB) after nearly three decades, according to an agreement signed on Friday.

“Today we celebrate the beginning of debt relieving and opening the door to external financing,” said Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok when addressing a celebration held in Khartoum.

“We promise our people and international partners to press ahead to utilize the financing resources to establish great development projects to achieve social justice,” he added.

Meanwhile, Sudan’s Finance Minister Jibril Ibrahim said the settlement of the arrears to the WB enables Sudan to get financing also from other financing institutions.

Ibrahim further expressed his country’s gratitude that the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced on Friday the willingness to provide a bridge financing of approximately 1.15 billion U.S. dollars to help Sudan clear its arrears to the WB.

Sudan’s payment of its arrears to the WB constitutes a beginning for restoring normal transactions between Sudan and the WB Group, including the International Development Association (IDA), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA).

Sudan is seeking exemption from its foreign debts, which exceeds 56 billion U.S. dollars owed to international financial institutions and other creditors.